Ad hoc target based photograph sharing

ABSTRACT

Methods, systems and computer program products for sharing of photographs based on targets depicted in the photographs are provided. Aspects include receiving photographs of an event from one or more users, wherein each of the photographs include metadata related to the photograph and a usage policy for the photograph, identifying one or more targets depicted in the photographs based at least in part on the metadata and storing the photographs in a database. Aspects also include receiving an access request for photographs that include a first target from a requestor, wherein the access request includes an indication of the desired use, identifying one or more photographs in the database that depict the first target and which permit the desired use and providing the one or more photographs to the requester.

BACKGROUND

The present invention generally relates to sharing photographs, and moreparticularly to ad hoc sharing of photographs based on targets depictedin the photographs.

The increasing popularity of smartphones that include high-resolutioncameras has led to people taking and sharing photographs. Whentraveling, attending an event, or watching a sporting event (e.g.football game, horse race or automobile race), there are many userstaking photo/video at the same time.

However, when a user at an event wants to take a picture or video of aparticular target (e.g. a football player, particular horse or car), thequality of the photo depends on the current location of the user (e.g.the seat) and the location of the target. In many cases, the user maynot have a clear line of sight of the target or may be too far away fromthe target to capture the desired photograph.

Therefore, heretofore unaddressed needs still exist in the art toaddress the aforementioned deficiencies and inadequacies.

SUMMARY

In accordance with an embodiment, a method for sharing of photographsbased on targets depicted in the photographs is provided. The methodincludes receiving photographs of an event from one or more users,wherein each of the photographs include metadata related to thephotograph and a usage policy for the photograph, identifying one ormore targets depicted in the photographs based at least in part on themetadata and storing the photographs in a database. The method alsoincludes receiving an access request for photographs that include afirst target from a requestor, wherein the access request includes anindication of the desired use, identifying one or more photographs inthe database that depict the first target and which permit the desireduse and providing the one or more photographs to the requester.

In another embodiment of the invention, a processing system for sharingof photographs based on targets depicted in the photographs includes aprocessor configured to receive photographs of an event from one or moreusers, wherein each of the photographs include metadata related to thephotograph and a usage policy for the photograph, identify one or moretargets depicted in the photographs based at least in part on themetadata and store the photographs in a database. The processor is alsoconfigured to receive an access request for photographs that include thefirst target from a requestor, wherein the access request includes anindication of the desired use, identify one or more photographs in thedatabase that depict the first target and which permit the desired useand provide the one or more photographs to the requester.

In accordance with a further embodiment, a computer program product forsharing of photographs based on targets depicted in the photographsincludes a non-transitory storage medium readable by a processingcircuit and storing instructions for execution by the processing circuitfor performing a method. The method includes receiving photographs of anevent from one or more users, wherein each of the photographs includemetadata related to the photograph and a usage policy for thephotograph, identifying one or more targets depicted in the photographsbased at least in part on the metadata and storing the photographs in adatabase. The method also includes receiving an access request forphotographs that include a first target from a requestor, wherein theaccess request includes an indication of the desired use, identifyingone or more photographs in the database that depict the first target andwhich permit the desired use and providing the one or more photographsto the requester.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter which is regarded as the invention is particularlypointed out and distinctly claimed in the claims at the conclusion ofthe specification. The foregoing and other features, and advantages ofthe invention are apparent from the following detailed description takenin conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 depicts a cloud computing environment according to an embodimentof the present invention;

FIG. 2 depicts abstraction model layers according to an embodiment ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating one example of a processingsystem for practice of the teachings herein;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a system for sharing ofphotographs based on targets depicted in the photographs in accordancewith exemplary embodiments; and

FIG. 5 shows a flow chart illustrating a method for sharing ofphotographs based on targets depicted in the photographs in accordancewith an embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Embodiments include methods, systems, and computer program products forsharing of photographs based on targets depicted in the photographs. Inexemplary embodiments, a photograph sharing system is configured toreceive photographs from individuals at an event that depict one or moretargets. The photograph sharing system stores the photographs along withmetadata that indicates the depicted targets and other relevantinformation. Other users of the photograph sharing system can search forphotographs of a desired target at the event. In exemplary embodiments,the photographs may be stored with a usage policy determined by theindividual that captured the photograph. In exemplary embodiments, themetadata may include geographic information, such as the user's GPSlocation, user's devices orientation/direction.

It is to be understood that although this disclosure includes a detaileddescription on cloud computing, implementation of the teachings recitedherein are not limited to a cloud computing environment. Rather,embodiments of the present invention are capable of being implemented inconjunction with any other type of computing environment now known orlater developed.

Cloud computing is a model of service delivery for enabling convenient,on-demand network access to a shared pool of configurable computingresources (e.g., networks, network bandwidth, servers, processing,memory, storage, applications, virtual machines, and services) that canbe rapidly provisioned and released with minimal management effort orinteraction with a provider of the service. This cloud model may includeat least five characteristics, at least three service models, and atleast four deployment models.

Characteristics are as follows:

On-demand self-service: a cloud consumer can unilaterally provisioncomputing capabilities, such as server time and network storage, asneeded automatically without requiring human interaction with theservice's provider.

Broad network access: capabilities are available over a network andaccessed through standard mechanisms that promote use by heterogeneousthin or thick client platforms (e.g., mobile phones, laptops, and PDAs).

Resource pooling: the provider's computing resources are pooled to servemultiple consumers using a multi-tenant model, with different physicaland virtual resources dynamically assigned and reassigned according todemand. There is a sense of location independence in that the consumergenerally has no control or knowledge over the exact location of theprovided resources but may be able to specify location at a higher levelof abstraction (e.g., country, state, or datacenter).

Rapid elasticity: capabilities can be rapidly and elasticallyprovisioned, in some cases automatically, to quickly scale out andrapidly released to quickly scale in. To the consumer, the capabilitiesavailable for provisioning often appear to be unlimited and can bepurchased in any quantity at any time.

Measured service: cloud systems automatically control and optimizeresource use by leveraging a metering capability at some level ofabstraction appropriate to the type of service (e.g., storage,processing, bandwidth, and active user accounts). Resource usage can bemonitored, controlled, and reported, providing transparency for both theprovider and consumer of the utilized service.

Service Models are as follows:

Software as a Service (SaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto use the provider's applications running on a cloud infrastructure.The applications are accessible from various client devices through athin client interface such as a web browser (e.g., web-based e-mail).The consumer does not manage or control the underlying cloudinfrastructure including network, servers, operating systems, storage,or even individual application capabilities, with the possible exceptionof limited user-specific application configuration settings.

Platform as a Service (PaaS): the capability provided to the consumer isto deploy onto the cloud infrastructure consumer-created or acquiredapplications created using programming languages and tools supported bythe provider. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure including networks, servers, operating systems, orstorage, but has control over the deployed applications and possiblyapplication hosting environment configurations.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS): the capability provided to theconsumer is to provision processing, storage, networks, and otherfundamental computing resources where the consumer is able to deploy andrun arbitrary software, which can include operating systems andapplications. The consumer does not manage or control the underlyingcloud infrastructure but has control over operating systems, storage,deployed applications, and possibly limited control of select networkingcomponents (e.g., host firewalls).

Deployment Models are as follows:

Private cloud: the cloud infrastructure is operated solely for anorganization. It may be managed by the organization or a third party andmay exist on-premises or off-premises.

Community cloud: the cloud infrastructure is shared by severalorganizations and supports a specific community that has shared concerns(e.g., mission, security requirements, policy, and complianceconsiderations). It may be managed by the organizations or a third partyand may exist on-premises or off-premises.

Public cloud: the cloud infrastructure is made available to the generalpublic or a large industry group and is owned by an organization sellingcloud services.

Hybrid cloud: the cloud infrastructure is a composition of two or moreclouds (private, community, or public) that remain unique entities butare bound together by standardized or proprietary technology thatenables data and application portability (e.g., cloud bursting forload-balancing between clouds).

A cloud computing environment is service oriented with a focus onstatelessness, low coupling, modularity, and semantic interoperability.At the heart of cloud computing is an infrastructure that includes anetwork of interconnected nodes.

Referring now to FIG. 1, illustrative cloud computing environment 50 isdepicted. As shown, cloud computing environment 50 includes one or morecloud computing nodes 10 with which local computing devices used bycloud consumers, such as, for example, personal digital assistant (PDA)or cellular telephone 54A, desktop computer 54B, laptop computer 54C,and/or automobile computer system 54N may communicate. Nodes 10 maycommunicate with one another. They may be grouped (not shown) physicallyor virtually, in one or more networks, such as Private, Community,Public, or Hybrid clouds as described hereinabove, or a combinationthereof. This allows cloud computing environment 50 to offerinfrastructure, platforms and/or software as services for which a cloudconsumer does not need to maintain resources on a local computingdevice. It is understood that the types of computing devices 54A-N shownin FIG. 1 are intended to be illustrative only and that computing nodes10 and cloud computing environment 50 can communicate with any type ofcomputerized device over any type of network and/or network addressableconnection (e.g., using a web browser).

Referring now to FIG. 2, a set of functional abstraction layers providedby cloud computing environment 50 (FIG. 1) is shown. It should beunderstood in advance that the components, layers, and functions shownin FIG. 2 are intended to be illustrative only and embodiments of theinvention are not limited thereto. As depicted, the following layers andcorresponding functions are provided:

Hardware and software layer 60 includes hardware and softwarecomponents. Examples of hardware components include: mainframes 61; RISC(Reduced Instruction Set Computer) architecture based servers 62;servers 63; blade servers 64; storage devices 65; and networks andnetworking components 66. In some embodiments, software componentsinclude network application server software 67 and database software 68.

Virtualization layer 70 provides an abstraction layer from which thefollowing examples of virtual entities may be provided: virtual servers71; virtual storage 72; virtual networks 73, including virtual privatenetworks; virtual applications and operating systems 74; and virtualclients 75.

In one example, management layer 80 may provide the functions describedbelow. Resource provisioning 81 provides dynamic procurement ofcomputing resources and other resources that are utilized to performtasks within the cloud computing environment. Metering and Pricing 82provide cost tracking as resources are utilized within the cloudcomputing environment, and billing or invoicing for consumption of theseresources. In one example, these resources may include applicationsoftware licenses. Security provides identity verification for cloudconsumers and tasks, as well as protection for data and other resources.User portal 83 provides access to the cloud computing environment forconsumers and system administrators. Service level management 84provides cloud computing resource allocation and management such thatrequired service levels are met. Service Level Agreement (SLA) planningand fulfillment 85 provide pre-arrangement for, and procurement of,cloud computing resources for which a future requirement is anticipatedin accordance with an SLA.

Workloads layer 90 provides examples of functionality for which thecloud computing environment may be utilized. Examples of workloads andfunctions which may be provided from this layer include: mapping andnavigation 91; software development and lifecycle management 92; virtualclassroom education delivery 93; data analytics processing 94;transaction processing 95; and photograph sharing 96.

Referring to FIG. 3, there is shown an embodiment of a processing system100 for implementing the teachings herein. In this embodiment, thesystem 100 has one or more central processing units (processors) 101 a,101 b, 101 c, etc. (collectively or generically referred to asprocessor(s) 101). In one embodiment, each processor 101 may include areduced instruction set computer (RISC) microprocessor. Processors 101are coupled to system memory 114 and various other components via asystem bus 113. Read only memory (ROM) 102 is coupled to the system bus113 and may include a basic input/output system (BIOS), which controlscertain basic functions of system 100.

FIG. 3 further depicts an input/output (I/O) adapter 107 and a networkadapter 106 coupled to the system bus 113. I/O adapter 107 may be asmall computer system interface (SCSI) adapter that communicates with ahard disk 103 and/or tape storage drive 105 or any other similarcomponent. I/O adapter 107, hard disk 103, and tape storage device 105are collectively referred to herein as mass storage 104. Operatingsystem 120 for execution on the processing system 100 may be stored inmass storage 104. A network adapter 106 interconnects bus 113 with anoutside network 116 enabling data processing system 100 to communicatewith other such systems. A screen (e.g., a display monitor) 115 isconnected to system bus 113 by display adaptor 112, which may include agraphics adapter to improve the performance of graphics intensiveapplications and a video controller. In one embodiment, adapters 107,106, and 112 may be connected to one or more I/O busses that areconnected to system bus 113 via an intermediate bus bridge (not shown).Suitable I/O buses for connecting peripheral devices such as hard diskcontrollers, network adapters, and graphics adapters typically includecommon protocols, such as the Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI).Additional input/output devices are shown as connected to system bus 113via user interface adapter 108 and display adapter 112. A keyboard 109,mouse 110, and speaker 111 all interconnected to bus 113 via userinterface adapter 108, which may include, for example, a Super I/O chipintegrating multiple device adapters into a single integrated circuit.

Thus, as configured in FIG. 3, the processing system 100 includesprocessing capability in the form of processors 101, storage capabilityincluding the system memory 114 and mass storage 104, input means suchas keyboard 109 and mouse 110, and output capability including speaker111 and display 115. In one embodiment, a portion of system memory 114and mass storage 104 collectively store an operating system tocoordinate the functions of the various components shown in FIG. 1.

Referring now to FIG. 4, a system 200 for sharing of photographs basedon targets depicted in the photographs in accordance with an embodimentis shown. As illustrated, the system 200 includes a camera 208 that isused to capture a photograph and a processing system 206 that isconfigured to store the photograph in a database 202. In one embodiment,the processing system 206 can be a processing system such as the oneshown in FIG. 3 above. In exemplary embodiments, the camera 208 can beembodied in a smartphone, tablet or the like which is configured totransmit the photograph to the processing system via a communicationsnetwork 204.

In exemplary embodiments, the database 202 is configured to storephotographs, metadata and usage policies associated with thephotographs. The database 202 may be a public, private, or semi-privateimage database that is accessible by the communications network 204. Thecommunications network 204 may include, but is not limited to, acellular communications network, the Internet, a private network, andthe like. In exemplary embodiments, the camera 208 includes a GPS sensorand is configured to attach metadata, such as a geotag and timestamp, tophotographs as they are captured and saved.

In exemplary embodiments, the processing system 206 is configured tosearch the image database 202 based on receiving a request, whichincludes one or more of a requested target and the desired use. In oneembodiment, the processing system 206 uses the metadata to identifyphotographs that depict the requested target and then performs acomparison between the desired use and the usage policy of theidentified photographs. Once photographs that depict the requestedtarget and which permit the desired use are selected, the processingsystem 206 responds to the query by providing the selected photographs.

Referring now to FIG. 5, a method 300 for sharing photographs based ontargets depicted in the photographs is shown. As shown at block 502, themethod 500 includes receiving photographs of an event from one or moreusers. In exemplary embodiments, each of the photographs includesmetadata related to the photograph and a usage policy for thephotograph. In exemplary embodiments, the metadata includes at least oneof a GPS location of a camera that captured the photograph at a time thephotograph was captured, an orientation of the camera at the time thephotograph was captured, a timestamp of the time the photograph wascaptured.

Next, as shown at block 304, the method 300 includes identifying one ormore targets depicted in the photographs based at least in part on themetadata. In exemplary embodiments, identifying one or more targetsdepicted in each of the photographs can be further based on a query of apublic database for the metadata. In one example, the public databasecan include a map of the event depicted in one of the photographs andinformation regarding targets participating in the event. The publicdatabase may include data, including photographs and video, from sourcessuch as television cameras at the event and the public database caninclude a processing system that is configured to track a movement of atarget during the event. For example, the public database may keep trackof the participants, or targets, at an event and may track the movementof the targets on the playing field or stage. Accordingly, when aphotograph is uploaded that has a geotag and timestamp that correspondsto the event, the processing system can tag the likely targets shown inthe photograph based on the tracking of the targets and the knownlocation and orientation of the camera that captured the image. Themethod 300 also includes storing the photographs in a database, as shownat block 306.

Next, as shown at block 308, the method 300 receiving an access requestfor photographs that include the first target from a requestor, whereinthe access request includes an indication of the desired use. In oneembodiment, the photograph sharing system can be on open system in whichanyone can access. In another embodiment, the photograph sharing systemcan be a semi-public system which requires users to post and sharephotographs before being able to request photographs. In yet anotherembodiment, the photograph sharing system can be a semi-public systemwhich requires users to post and share photographs of a particular eventand/or target before being able to request photographs of that eventand/or target.

The method 300 also includes identifying one or more photographs in thedatabase that depict the first target and which permit the desired use,as shown at block 310. In exemplary embodiments, the identification is atwo-step process that first identifies candidate photographs that depictthe first target and compares the desired use with the usage policy ofthe candidate photographs. Next, as shown at block 312, the method 300providing the one or more identified photographs to the requester.

In exemplary embodiments, the usage policy can be based on one or moreof a type of event depicted in the photograph and the one or moretargets depicted in the metadata. In one embodiment, a user of thephotograph sharing system may set up multiple usage policies forphotographs that they share and the user can select with usage policy toapply to a photograph based on the targets in the photograph or a typeof event depicted in the event. For example, a user may set up adifferent usage policy for photographs of targets that are publicindividuals, such as participants in a sporting event or concert, andfor private individuals such as family members. In addition, the usermay set usage policies based on the event type to allow different accessand user for public events, such as sporting events or concerts, orprivate events such as birthday parties or company events.

For example, a user may set a usage policy that provides that for abaseball game event type they share all of their photographs withoutrestriction. However, for a plano recital event type, they only sharephotos with a usage policy that provides that the photos cannot be usedfor commercial purposes, magazines or new paper. The usages policy canbe configured in any user desire and can include default and samplepolicies available for a user. The filter of what usage policy to applyto what photographs can be done using GPS, image processing and/or eventinformation gathered from social networks such as event entries onsocial networks, tweets about an event happening now etc.

In exemplary embodiments, identifying the one or more targets depictedin each of the photographs is further based on an identificationprovided by the one or more users. In exemplary embodiments, the user ispresented with an option to identify, or tag, a target in a photographthat they have captured. In one embodiment, the user may be presentedwith a list of potential targets based on the location of the camera atthe time the photograph was taken. For example, if the camera captures apicture at a basketball game, the user may be presented with a list ofpopular players on the teams playing in the game that day. The userprovided identification information can be saved as metadata and can beused by the photograph sharing system. In exemplary embodiments, thephotograph sharing system may be configured to verify the accuracy ofthe identification provided by the user.

In exemplary embodiments, the processing system 206 is configured tosearch the image database 202 based on receiving a request, whichincludes one or more of a requested target and the desired use. Thesearch can be supplemented with a set of parameters based on the target.For example, the parameter can look for photos based on the position ofthe viewer at the event. In another example, the parameter can look forphotographs based on distance from the identified target. In anotherexample, the parameter can look for photos that include a specific setof targets. In another example, the parameter can look for photoscontaining a view of the target from the right side, perhaps, this isbecause the target is a soccer player that kicks the soccer ball usinghis right foot. Depending on where the soccer player is facing, a photofrom the south soccer field might satisfy the request, and at adifferent time, a photo from the north soccer field might satisfy thesame request.

In another exemplary embodiment, the photo of the soccer player can beorganized based on the path that the soccer play went through. This pathcan be displayed to the user graphically for navigation. The user canselect search parameter that is a specified a point on the path of theplay. In other embodiments, the user can navigate through a segment ofthe path with step size defined by physical distance or time. While theuser navigates through the path, selected sample photos can be displayedto the user. These selected sample photos can be chosen using theparameters described earlier.

These search parameters can be specified using many mechanisms. Forexample, a soccer field can be displayed to the user, and the user canselect the viewer location by pointing at the specific location in thesoccer field on a touch screen computing device. In another example, atarget can be displayed, the user can rotate the target and select thedesirable view using an input device such as a mouse. In anotherexample, the search parameters can be generated based on another inputphoto. Multiple search attributes from one or more input photos can beextracted. These attributes include the targets, the locations of thetarget, or the locations of the camera when the photos are captured. Oneor more attributes can be selected and modified, and use as parametersto search for other photos. These modifications can include adding orsubtracting a specific time, adding or subtracting a specific distancealong a path for a target, choosing a specific direction of view for atarget, choosing a specific camera or viewer location, or retrieving thepath of a target surrounding the position of the target for furthernavigation. In one example, the user can capture a photo during an eventand use it as a “bookmark” or reminder and, at a different time or afterthe event, the user can look for other photos based on the bookmarkphoto.

Although discussed above primarily with respect to photographs, it willbe apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art that the methods andsystems taught herein could be used in the sharing of video clips. Forexample, each frame, or a selected subset of frames, of the video can betreated as a separate photograph has a specific timestamp. Based on thistimestamp, multiple targets in the video frame can be identified. Theframe in the video can be extracted based on the target(s), and can becombined or viewed with other media (including other video, photo).

The present invention may be a system, a method, and/or a computerprogram product. The computer program product may include a computerreadable storage medium (or media) having computer readable programinstructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of thepresent invention.

The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that canretain and store instructions for use by an instruction executiondevice. The computer readable storage medium may be, for example, but isnot limited to, an electronic storage device, a magnetic storage device,an optical storage device, an electromagnetic storage device, asemiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of theforegoing. A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of thecomputer readable storage medium includes the following: a portablecomputer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), aread-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROMor Flash memory), a static random access memory (SRAM), a portablecompact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk (DVD),a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such aspunch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructionsrecorded thereon, and any suitable combination of the foregoing. Acomputer readable storage medium, as used herein, is not to be construedas being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or other freelypropagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagatingthrough a waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulsespassing through a fiber-optic cable), or electrical signals transmittedthrough a wire.

Computer readable program instructions described herein can bedownloaded to respective computing/processing devices from a computerreadable storage medium or to an external computer or external storagedevice via a network, for example, the Internet, a local area network, awide area network and/or a wireless network. The network may comprisecopper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers, wirelesstransmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/oredge servers. A network adapter card or network interface in eachcomputing/processing device receives computer readable programinstructions from the network and forwards the computer readable programinstructions for storage in a computer readable storage medium withinthe respective computing/processing device.

Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations ofthe present invention may be assembler instructions,instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions,machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions,state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in anycombination of one or more programming languages, including an objectoriented programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, andconventional procedural programming languages, such as the “C”programming language or similar programming languages. The computerreadable program instructions may execute entirely on the user'scomputer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone softwarepackage, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computeror entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario,the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through anytype of network, including a local area network (LAN) or a wide areanetwork (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer(for example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider).In some embodiments, electronic circuitry including, for example,programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGA), orprogrammable logic arrays (PLA) may execute the computer readableprogram instructions by utilizing state information of the computerreadable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry,in order to perform aspects of the present invention.

Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference toflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus(systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of theinvention. It will be understood that each block of the flowchartillustrations and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in theflowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams, can be implemented bycomputer readable program instructions.

These computer readable program instructions may be provided to aprocessor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, orother programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, suchthat the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computeror other programmable data processing apparatus, create means forimplementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or blockdiagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructionsmay also be stored in a computer readable storage medium that can directa computer, a programmable data processing apparatus, and/or otherdevices to function in a particular manner, such that the computerreadable storage medium having instructions stored therein comprises anarticle of manufacture including instructions which implement aspects ofthe function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram blockor blocks.

The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto acomputer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other deviceto cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer,other programmable apparatus or other device to produce a computerimplemented process, such that the instructions which execute on thecomputer, other programmable apparatus, or other device implement thefunctions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block orblocks.

The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate thearchitecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementationsof systems, methods, and computer program products according to variousembodiments of the present invention. In this regard, each block in theflowchart or block diagrams may represent a module, segment, or portionof instructions, which comprises one or more executable instructions forimplementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternativeimplementations, the functions noted in the block may occur out of theorder noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in successionmay, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently, or the blocks maysometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon thefunctionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of theblock diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocksin the block diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, can be implementedby special purpose hardware-based systems that perform the specifiedfunctions or acts or carry out combinations of special purpose hardwareand computer instructions.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method for target basedphotograph sharing, the method comprising: receiving photographs of anevent from one or more users, wherein each of the photographs includesmetadata related to the photograph and a usage policy for thephotograph; identifying one or more targets depicted in the photographsbased at least in part on the metadata; storing the photographs in adatabase; receiving an access request for photographs that include afirst target from a requestor, wherein the access request includes anindication of a desired use; identifying one or more photographs in thedatabase that depict the first target and which permit the desired use;and providing the one or more photographs to the requestor, wherein theusage policy for each of the photographs is based on one or more of atype of event depicted in the photograph and the one or more targetsdepicted in the photograph.
 2. The computer-implemented method of claim1, wherein the metadata includes at least one of a GPS location of acamera that captured the photograph at a time the photograph wascaptured, an orientation of the camera at the time the photograph wascaptured, and a timestamp of the time the photograph was captured. 3.The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein identifying one ormore targets depicted in each of the photographs is further based on aquery of a public database for the metadata.
 4. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 3, wherein the public database includes a map of theevent depicted in one of the photographs and information regardingtargets participating in the event.
 5. The computer-implemented methodof claim 4, wherein the public database is configured to track amovement of a target during the event.
 6. The computer-implementedmethod of claim 1, wherein identifying the one or more targets depictedin each of the photographs is further based on an identificationprovided by the one or more users.
 7. The computer-implemented method ofclaim 1, wherein the requestor is required to upload a photograph of theevent before being provided the one or more photographs.
 8. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein identifying the one ormore photographs that include the first target and which permit thedesired use includes: selecting each photograph that includes the firsttarget; and comparing the desired use to the usage policy of theselected photographs.
 9. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein identifying the one or more photographs that include the firsttarget includes receiving one or more parameters for the first targetthat includes one or more of: a position of requestor relative to thefirst target; a distance between the first target and the requestor, anda path of the first target during the event.
 10. A computer programproduct for target based photograph sharing, the computer programproduct comprising: a non-transitory storage medium readable by aprocessing circuit and storing instructions for execution by theprocessing circuit for performing a method comprising: receivingphotographs of an event from one or more users, wherein each of thephotographs includes metadata related to the photograph and a usagepolicy for the photograph; identifying one or more targets depicted inthe photographs based at least in part on the metadata; storing thephotographs in a database; receiving an access request for photographsthat include a first target from a requestor, wherein the access requestincludes an indication of a desired use; identifying one or morephotographs in the database that depict the first target and whichpermit the desired use; and providing the one or more photographs to therequestor, wherein the usage policy for each of the photographs is basedon one or more of a type of event depicted in the photograph and the oneor more targets depicted in the photograph.
 11. The computer programproduct of claim 10, wherein the metadata includes at least one of a GPSlocation of a camera that captured the photograph at a time thephotograph was captured, an orientation of the camera at the time thephotograph was captured, and a timestamp of the time the photograph wascaptured.
 12. The computer program product of claim 10, whereinidentifying one or more targets depicted in each of the photographs isfurther based on a query of a public database for the metadata.
 13. Thecomputer program product of claim 12, wherein the public databaseincludes a map of the event depicted in one of the photographs andinformation regarding targets participating in the event.
 14. Thecomputer program product of claim 13, wherein the public database isconfigured to track a movement of a target during the event.
 15. Thecomputer program product of claim 10, wherein identifying the one ormore targets depicted in each of the photographs is further based on anidentification provided by the one or more users.
 16. The computerprogram product of claim 10, wherein the requestor is required to uploada photograph of the event before being provided the one or morephotographs.
 17. The computer program product of claim 10, whereinidentifying the one or more photographs that include the first targetand which permit the desired use includes: selecting each photographthat includes the first target; and comparing the desired use to theusage policy of the selected photographs.
 18. A processing system fortarget based photograph sharing includes a processor, the processorconfigured to: receive photographs of an event from one or more users,wherein each of the photographs includes metadata related to thephotograph and a usage policy for the photograph; identify one or moretargets depicted in the photographs based at least in part on themetadata; store the photographs in a database; receive an access requestfor photographs that include a first target from a requestor, whereinthe access request includes an indication of a desired use; identify oneor more photographs in the database that depict the first target andwhich permit the desired use; and provide the one or more photographs tothe requestor, wherein the usage policy for each of the photographs isbased on one or more of a type of event depicted in the photograph andthe one or more targets depicted in the photograph.